Chapter 151: A Messy Situation

Following the directions given by the innkeeper and asking around along the way, Mu Hu finally arrived at the entrance of the Bai Family residence.

The first thing he saw was a sweet, well-behaved little girl playing by the gate.

“Little one, is this the home of Bai Yunxing?”

Juanjuan looked up at the handsome uncle in front of her, took a small step back, then nodded. “Yes.”

Mu Hu let out a sigh of relief. Good, he was in the right place.

“Are you here to see my second brother?” Juanjuan asked.

“Your second brother…”

“Bai Yunxing.”

Juanjuan found the man a bit strange and instinctively took another step back, preparing to run into the house if needed.

Her second brother had taught her that since they were still young and couldn’t fight adults, running was the safest option.

Juanjuan knew that if she ran home and found her mother, her eldest brother, or her third brother, she’d be safe. They were her strongest support.

Her mother was an adult and could fight.

Her eldest and third brothers were still kids, but they knew spells and were super powerful.

Her second brother was strong too, but he’d be even stronger when he grew up. Better not to trouble him for now.

As for her father… she’d protect him instead!

“Juan’er! What are you doing?”

Her eldest brother’s voice came from inside the courtyard, and in a flash, he was by her side.

With her big brother there, Juanjuan wasn’t scared anymore. She simply said, “He’s here to see Second Brother.”

Mu Hu was getting more and more confused. Why were all the people coming out just kids? Which young master had arranged this contact? It was all so… down-to-earth. And weren’t there way too many weak spots?

“I’m here to see your second brother,” Mu Hu said, now assuming that the two kids in front of him were the youngest in the family, and that the so-called second brother must be much older.

Bai Yunqi: 【Oh? He’s here for Second Brother? Could it be…】

“Bai Yunxing! Someone’s looking for you!”

A sharp yell came from Bai Family’s Goudan, loud enough for everyone to hear.

If it were just any adult, they might not have cared.

But Bai Tian and Jiang Dai were bored, and immediately turned to see what was going on.

When they saw an adult at the door—

Bai Tian asked Jiang Dai, “Our kids are making friends with people this old now?”

Jiang Dai replied, “If it were the eldest, I’d think someone came to settle scores. But Second… maybe he’s been secretly doing good deeds?”

Bai Tian nodded. “Not impossible.”

Bai Yunqi: …He heard all of that, by the way!

Bai Yun’an looked at the man outside and couldn’t help but smile.

【Could this be someone Second Brother tried to contact? This situation… is kind of a mess.】

Bai Yunxing came out and saw his whole family standing in the courtyard, and a familiar face waiting outside.

【Brother Hu Zi!】

【Why did he come here now? There are too many people around. How am I supposed to…】

Juanjuan, hearing her second brother’s inner thoughts, gave Mu Hu another look.

So this was… someone her second brother knew?

“Are you… Bai Yunxing?” Mu Hu asked tentatively, turning to Bai Tian.

To him, the only adult male in the courtyard who looked remotely reliable was Bai Tian. He figured this must be the “second brother” the kids were talking about.

Bai Tian: ?

【I’m my own son now? What a joke!】

Bai Tian pointed behind him at his second son. “Not me. He is. What’s the matter?”

Mu Hu stared at the small boy, barely half his height, who hadn’t even hit his growth spurt yet, and fell silent.

Wait a minute. His brain short-circuited.

The person he was looking for… was a kid who looked no older than six or seven? This was supposed to be a secret contact?

Which young master arranged this? How ridiculous could it get?

“What do you want with my son?” Bai Tian asked warily.

Mu Hu: …

Honestly, even he wasn’t sure anymore.

“Did you pick up my blueprint?” Bai Yunxing asked calmly.

What else could he say? The situation was already a mess. No point making it worse.

The moment the little boy mentioned the blueprint, Mu Hu’s eyes lit up. There was hope again.

He hadn’t said a word about the blueprint, yet this kid knew about it. That was the key.

Jiang Dai, however, was puzzled. “What blueprint?”

Bai Yunxing replied, “Oh, just a drawing I spent a long time on, but lost. It had ‘Shiwei Restaurant’ written on it. I even mentioned it to Uncle Yang this afternoon.”

Mu Hu simply pulled the blueprint out. “This one, right?”

Jiang Dai blinked, feeling like something was off, though she couldn’t quite say what.

Juanjuan, who had heard her second brother’s inner thoughts and now understood the situation: …

Bai Yunqi and Bai Yun’an, who had secretly followed and also knew what was going on: …

Yeah, this really was a bit of a mess.

Only their parents were still clueless.

They even warmly thanked Mu Hu for going out of his way to return their child’s lost drawing.

When Bai Yunxing took the blueprint, he lightly tapped the side of Mu Hu’s hand twice.

Then he retreated to stand beside his parents and politely thanked him.

Watching from the side, Bai Yunqi clicked his tongue inwardly.

【Tsk tsk, that little move… If I hadn’t been watching closely, I wouldn’t have noticed it.】

【No idea what kind of signal that was, but looks like I’ll be getting up again tonight. Let’s see what secrets my oh-so-honest second brother is hiding!】

Bai Yun’an glanced at his big brother, who seemed to be in a good mood, and shrugged slightly.

【Tch! Goudan probably thinks he’s some big shot now. No rush tonight. I’ll wait until Second Brother heads out, then when Goudan follows, I’ll tail them both.】

【This is what they call “the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind¹“—kind of entertaining, actually.】

Juanjuan’s round eyes drooped slightly, her long lashes casting shadows over her gaze. She thought to herself that while her brothers always spoke in such convoluted ways, it was actually kind of satisfying.

Second Brother was hiding something, Big Brother was eavesdropping in secret thinking he was the smartest of them all, but in truth, Third Brother already knew everything from the shadows.

What none of them realized, though, was that she knew it all too.

Juanjuan felt a little pleased with herself, but she didn’t dare show it.

She couldn’t help Second Brother right now. She hadn’t come up with a good way to fool Big Brother and Third Brother, who were both sharp and already knew the truth.

Just like grown-ups always said—sometimes, the best way for a kid to help is simply not to get in the way.

Mu Hu, upon receiving the signal, understood it was from one of their own.

He still didn’t believe this little boy could be an informant, but he chose to trust the code.

He didn’t linger. After a few polite words, he turned and left.

Bai Tian and Jiang Dai also found the guy a bit too friendly, but then again, maybe he really was just a warm-hearted person.

It was nearly bedtime.

Suddenly, the door to the three sons’ room burst open with a loud “bang!”

“Dun-dun-dun! Your dad is here!”

Bai Tian stood at the doorway holding his pillow and a small blanket, cheerfully greeting his sons.

Compared to Bai Tian’s enthusiasm, the three brothers fell silent for a moment.

Bai Yunqi: What’s Dad doing here?

Bai Yunxing: It’s fine. Dad sleeps like a rock. He won’t be a problem.

Bai Yun’an: He’s not gonna snore again, is he?

Bai Tian: ?

As the dutiful eldest son, Bai Yunqi immediately gave a warm response.

“Wow! Dad, you’re finally here! You have no idea—I can’t sleep well without you around!”

Bai Yunqi wasn’t just anyone. He knew exactly what to say to whom. After surviving under the noses of a bunch of old foxes for so long, how could he not know what people wanted to hear?

Bai Yunxing stepped up and took his dad’s pillow. “Dad, you’re sleeping on the outside, right?”

Bai Yun’an quickly made space on the bed for him.

Looking at his enthusiastic sons, Bai Tian beamed and said, “Your mom’s arm is almost healed now. She doesn’t need me at night anymore, so I came back!”

“The weather’s getting hot, and Juanjuan’s growing up. It’s more comfortable here anyway. The four of us men together—what could be better?”

While tidying the bed, Bai Yun’an gave the slightest shake of his head, then sighed. If you looked closely, there was a helpless fondness in his eyes.

Forget it. Having a cheerful dad like this wasn’t so bad. In the post-apocalyptic world, it was rare to see someone his age still so upbeat.

More importantly, he wasn’t dumb. He even had a bit of cunning. That was good enough. Be content.

Just treat it as a bit of fun.

As the night deepened, Bai Yunxing carefully got up. After checking around, he saw that Dad and both brothers were sound asleep.

Only then did he quietly push the door open and slip out.

Not long after, Bai Yunqi followed.

Bai Yun’an sat up and got out of bed.

He turned to look at the now-empty bed, only their dad left snoring softly, and clicked his tongue.

If only he dared to test human nature, it wouldn’t be impossible to let their parents use some of the items in the Spatial Storage.

But human nature… he didn’t dare gamble on that.

Greed had a way of creeping in, step by step, until it crossed all boundaries. That was something he couldn’t tolerate.

At most…

When they left, he’d leave them something behind. After all, they were still family.

Juanjuan hadn’t slept well either.

She knew her brothers had something big planned tonight. With her mind full of thoughts, there was no way she could fall asleep.

So when her brothers left the room, she heard everything.

The sounds were soft, very soft, but in the stillness of the night, they stood out clearly.

Translator’s Notes